Thrust Statement: God’s wants His people to crave His righteousness.
Scripture Reading: Matthew 5:1-16; Luke 10:38-42
This message begins with the fourth beatitude in the Sermon on the Mount. In this beatitude, Jesus says, “Blessed (makavrioi makarioi) are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness (dikaiosuvnh diakaiosunh), for they will be filled” (Matthew 5:6).[1] The words hunger and thirst convey different mental images to different individuals. What does it mean to “hunger and thirst for righteousness”? Does the word starve ring a bell in your thinking? What does it denote to you to starve for righteousness? When a person is famished that person is starving. Do you yearn for the things of God? This hunger and thirst that Jesus speaks of is spiritualized. A classic example of this kind of “longing” is found in Mary’s attitude of devotion as she listened to the words of Jesus:
As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. 39 She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. 40 But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” 41 “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, 42 but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her” (Luke 10:38-42).
The words hunger and thirst in the Greek text are both participles. The participles are durative present tenses (peinw'te" kaiV diyw'te" peinwtes kai diywtes), which means that this hungering and thirsting is continuous. In the ancient world, physical hunger and thirst threatened both man and beast. In 436 BC, famine came to Rome and caused thousands of people to throw themselves into the Tiber River and end their lives. Just a brief history of the world reveals the severity of famine that has plagued the world and still plagues the world. Famine struck England in AD 1005. In fact, all Europe suffered a famine in 879, 1016, and 1162. Today, even with great technological advances, one still witnesses starvation. Unfortunately, the physical hunger of men and women is only a pale reflection of a far more serious famine that affects the world as a whole—a spiritual hunger and thirst for the Word of God and for the acts of goodness that reflect God's goodness.
One catches a brief glance of this kind of famine in the words of Jesus to Satan: “It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God’” (Matthew 4:4). “It is written” (gevgraptai gegraptai) is a perfect tense (“it has been written”), which simply means: “and once written, now stands forever.” This confrontation occurred in the context of Jesus’ fast for forty days and nights—“He was afterward an hungered” (KJV, 4:3). Following this period without food, Satan approaches Jesus about turning stones into bread (4:3). Jesus’ response should penetrate the hearts of His people. For Jesus, there is a hunger of the heart that is not in material things. The only way for one to experience true satisfaction in life is through complete dependence on God. This attitude of absolute trust in God can best be expressed in the words of Job after he experienced the loss of his family: “The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away; may the name of the LORD be praised” (Job 1:21c). In this same Scripture, Job cries out: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart” (1:21b).
To return again to Matthew 5:6, one should take note that this craving that Jesus speaks of is for a “righteousness” (dikaiosuvnh dikaiosunh) that pleases God, not just man. God is concerned about the external behavior of His people as well as the motive behind the action. The word righteousness in the Sermon on the Mount is employed with the primary meaning of actively doing the will of God (6:1-18). This concept is also presented in 6:33: “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness (dikaiosunh), and all these things will be given to you as well.” The primary meaning of “righteousness” in this verse is not God’s act in and through Jesus (imputed righteousness), but rather, it is the disciples’ act in doing the will of God in their daily walk with Him. Toward the end of this Sermon, Jesus speaks of “doing the will of my Father” (poie'n toV qevlhma tou' Patrov" poien to qelhma tou Patros) [7:21]. What is the “will of my Father”? The Sermon on the Mount reveals the will of God. The “will of God” must be interpreted in light of its context. The will of God is not necessarily a timeless reality but one that is related to the situation. Righteousness is always what corresponds to the will of God.
Jesus is concerned about haughtiness (6:3-5); He is concerned
about external and internal behavior (6:1); He is concerned
about forgiveness (6:12); He is concerned about loving one another (5:43-48);
He is concerned about hyper-critical judging (7:1-2); He is concerned
about bearing good fruit (7:15-23); and He is concerned about the
kind of foundation upon which you build your life (7:24-27). Jesus is saying
that His people can have only one priority in God’s kingdom—doing the will of
God. This same impression of righteousness is taught also in the so-called
Lord’s Prayer in Matthew
6:9-13.
In this prayer, Jesus expresses the necessity of doing God’s will on earth as
it is done in heaven (6:10).
God has made us for Himself, and our hearts will not find rest until they find rest in God. Just as a starving person longs for food and thirsts for water, so one who wishes to satisfy the inner longings of his or her soul can only find his or her satisfaction in God through Christ (11:28). This hunger for righteousness is a spiritual hunger that can only be fulfilled by God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Even though this righteousness in Matthew 5:6 has to do with sanctification, nevertheless, one can also say that one should also hunger and thirst for the righteousness that God imputes to individuals who put their trust in Jesus. This hunger and thirst that Jesus speaks of is a desire to please God by living in a way that will bring honor and praise to the One who created us for His pleasure. This craving for righteousness is a yearning for a holy way of life—a life of purity. In other words, it is a wish to be like Jesus. This kind of person is the one who desires to produce the fruit of the Spirit in his or her life (Galatians 5:19-26). The author of Hebrews expresses it this way:
Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice
of praise—the fruit of lips that confess his name. 16 And
do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God
is pleased (Hebrews
13:15-16).
This beatitude calls for zeal on the part of every believer to be like the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. The person who hungers and thirst after righteousness is the person who wishes to get rid of sin in his or her life. It is a desire to get rid of sin in order that one might exemplify Christ. The words of the Psalmist capture graphically the thought of the words of Jesus: “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. 2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?” (Psalm 42:1-2). Paul, too, grabs hold of the very heart of this Beatitude when he writes: “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21). Paul is saying in essence, “I surrender to Jesus Christ.” Have you surrendered your life to Jesus? Do you hunger and thirst after righteousness?
Matthew utilizes this term righteousness seven times in his Gospel, of which five are in the Sermon on the Mount. This righteousness is the righteousness of people who are in harmony with the “will of God.” If one wishes to enter the kingdom of heaven (basileiva tw'n ouJranw'n basileia twn ouranwn), one must adhere to the ethical demands of God from a pure motive, that is to say, one’s righteous acts must be done to glorify God, not to receive praise from men. The “pure in heart” (kaqaroiV th/' kardiva/ kaqaroiV th kardia/) is the one who has a good conscience and harbors no evil intention. This beatitude is for the active behavior of people whose hearts are filled with praise for God’s mercy. After the conclusion of the Beatitudes, Jesus speaks of His followers as salt and light to the world (Matthew 5:13-16).
The purpose of engaging in acts of righteousness is not for show but for the glory of God. Jesus says, “that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven” (5:16). One’s attitude in the performance of good works is crucial to God. Jesus rebukes the religious leaders for their acts of righteousness (6:1-18). One should never carry out his or her acts of righteousness with an eye on the human grandstand of applause. Are you hungry for “the will of God” (toV qevlhma tou' qeou' to qelhma tou qeou, see Mark 3:35)? Do the words hunger and thirst employed by Jesus in the beatitudes communicate to you an intense desire for the things of God? Do you crave for features, or characteristics, that will bring honor and glory unto the One who sent His Son to reconcile you to Himself? Do your actions adorn the Word of God?
Again, what do the words hunger and thirst suggest to your mental image? Does the word starve jump out like neon lights flashing on some billboard? One may go to a dictionary and try to assign definitions to the words starve, hunger, or thirst, but the dictionary cannot define adequately these words that describes human misery and experience. Just what does it mean to “hunger” and “thirst” after “righteousness”?
Why do you do what you do in your Christian life? Are your religious acts done to receive glory from men and women? Or do you do your religious acts to glorify God? Jesus warned His disciples: “For I tell you that unless your righteousness (dikaiosuvnh dikaiosunh) surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:19). Not only were His disciples called to a standard of right living, but they were also informed of a greater righteousness by calling attention to a new interpretational structure of God’s Word, that is to say, a correct handling of God’s Word. In Matthew 5:21-48, Jesus analyses the hypocritical manner of the religious leaders handling the Holy Scriptures that violated the very intent of God. Following this pericope (unit of Scripture), Jesus then calls attention to three acts of righteousness—giving, praying, and fasting (6:1-18)—done for the wrong reason.
Matthew 6:1 begins with notification that one’s acts of righteousness must not be in front of men in order to be seen by them: “Be careful not to do your ‘acts of righteousness’ (dikaiosunh) before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.” Again, Jesus says, “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness (dikaiosunh), and all these things will be given to you as well” (6:33). What do you seek first? Is it the works of the flesh or is it God’s kingdom and His ethical instructions for holy living? One must never forget the end of this Sermon: “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven” (7:21). What is the “will of my Father”? Matthew 5—7 defines the “will of God” in 7:21. God’s answer to the human dilemma of spiritual starvation is a spiritual longing for the things of God first in one’s life. Do you put the righteousness of God foremost in your life? Christians must hunger and thirst after God’s righteousness. The words of the author of Hebrews warns against refusing God:
Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without
holiness no one will see the Lord. 15 See to it that
no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause
trouble and defile many. 16 See that no one is
sexually immoral, or is godless like Esau, who for a single meal sold his
inheritance rights as the oldest son. 17 Afterward,
as you know, when he wanted to inherit this blessing, he was rejected. He could
bring about no change of mind, though he sought the blessing with tears (Hebrews 12:14-17).
Needless to say, the ultimate righteousness of God is that which is “imputed” (credited) to man through faith in His Son Jesus Christ. Do you desire the absolute and perfect righteousness of God? If so, this can only be achieved “in and through” Jesus Christ. Do you feel that you are a miserable failure in your attempts to manifest deeds that bring glory to God? There is in every one of us an instinctive desire to do well, but, at the same time, we frequently fail. This Beatitude (5:6) blesses not only the deed, but also the dream that never came true. It is not he or she who has attained righteousness who is called blessed, but rather he or she who hungers and thirsts for it with all of his or her heart. If this blessedness were only for those who had achieved perfection in their desire to serve God, then it would be for none. It is for those who hunger after excellence in doing the will of God. Yes, it is for those who covet faultlessness in doing the will of God.
Surely there is a difference between the secret splendor of intentions and the poverty of our achievements. To illustrate still further the truth set forth in this beatitude, one only has to reflect upon this statement: “One may be passionately in love with music, but a bad musician.” Yes, man sees the deed, but God sees the intention. God sees the desire and love for goodness that lies behind the miserable failures found frequently in our lives. This was also true of David (a man after God’s own heart). David wished to build a house for God, but God would not allow David to construct such a house. Was God pleased with David even though He would not give David permission? Listen to the following words of Solomon as he expresses God’s delight about his father’s motives: “But the Lord said to my father David, ‘Because it was in your heart to build a temple for my Name, you did well to have this in your heart’” (1 Kings 8:18).
There is a sense in which this Beatitude drives one to Christ, the Savior of the world. As one seeks to achieve perfection in one’s acts of righteousness, the eye of the soul is turned away from self to Jesus. For in the words of Paul, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). I suspect that all of us who have gathered here in this assembly desire to please Him in all things. Yet, we all know that we have all failed miserably in our attempts to do the will of God in our daily walk with Him. The beauty of this Beatitude is that it is for those who genuinely hunger and thirst after righteousness, not just the achievers. As stated above, this “righteousness” designates the righteousness of the people. This “righteousness” designates an active, energetic longing, and a decisive effort toward the realization of righteousness.
Upon whom does Christ pronounce the benediction “blessed”? It is to those who hunger and thirst after His righteousness. This beatitude urges a decisive ethical initiative on the part of every believer. This “righteousness” is the righteousness of forbearance, of mercy, of purity, of peacemaking, of forgiveness, of love, and of sincerity. Do you wish to be holy? Do you have an insatiable appetite for ethical behavior that will bring honor and glory to God? The one who hungers and thirsts for righteousness is not one who is passive about doing the things of God. This pronouncement of “blessed” (makavrio" makarios) is not for passivity, but rather for the active behavior of His disciples.
The three preceding beatitudes set the stage for one to hunger and thirst after God’s way of righteousness (Matthew 5:3-5). If one is not bankrupt (ptwcoiv ptwcoi “poor”) in spirit (5:3), if one does not mourn because of his or her sin (5:4), and if one is not meek (5:5), this person will not hunger and thirst after righteousness. These beatitudes are “entrance requirements” into the kingdom of Heaven. Those who mourn over their failures and those who yearn for conformity to Christ are the ones accepted of God in Christ Jesus. Is there any hope for us in spite of our shortcomings? Yes, Jesus is the answer to the sin problem. Listen to Paul as he seeks to give the Christians at Rome hope:
But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. 22 This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. 25 God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— 26 he did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus. 27 Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded. On what principle? On that of observing the law? No, but on that of faith. 28 For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law. 29 Is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles too? Yes, of Gentiles too, 30 since there is only one God, who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through that same faith. 31 Do we, then, nullify the law by this faith? Not at all! Rather, we uphold the law (Romans 3:21-31).